Ballard Power Systems has signed a new long term supply agreement with Canadian Pacific Kansas City, including the initial supply of 98 fuel cell engines for use in the North American freight rail market.
Each engine has a nameplate of 200 kW, totaling roughly 20 megawatts of fuel cell power. Deliveries of all 98 engines are expected in 2025. The accord builds on an existing partnership between Ballard and CPKC, which started in 2021 and has included the delivery of roughly 10 MW of fuel cell engines to date.
To date, Ballard fuel cell engines have been successfully integrated into hydrogen-powered locomotives for regular switching and freight service applications in Alberta, Canada. The fuel cell engines purchased from Ballard will support the expansion of CPKC’s hydrogen locomotive program.
Prototype diesel freight locomotives retrofitted with hydrogen fuel cells, hydrogen storage and battery packs have undergone various testing at CPKC since 2022. CPKC currently has three hydrogen locomotives in operation.
